I've got the poor man's impala, a 1963 Biscayne inline 6 w/3 in the tree. Suddenly one day the car wont start. It's got a new battery with a good charge, but the starter wont turn over. Sometimes I get the click of the solinoid, but sometimes nothing at all. Just looking for some advice as to where to start looking? Ignition switch?, Coil? Any recommended trouble shooting procedures would be appreciated.

 

The coil will not affect the starter. It will still turn over with a bad coil but not start. You have to check to see if the solenoid is getting 12 volts when the key is turned to the start position. If no voltage to solenoid then you have a bad switch or a short in the wiring. If the voltage is there then the starter or the solenoid is defective.

 

Tried jumping the negative terminal to the block, nothing. Tried jumping the positive terminal to the solenoid, clicks, but doesn't turn the starter over. I pulled the starter out and tested it on the bench and it works fine. I cleaned up the ground points on the starter and the block and reinstalled, but with the same results. WHY WOULD THIS JUMP DIRECTLY FROM THE BATTERY TO TE SOLENOID NOT MAKE THE STARTER TURN???!!!

The other test I performed was to check the voltage at the solenoid/ignition connector on the solenoid when I'm turning the key over and it is VERY weak. like 0.5volts, but the battery is fully charged. Which makes me think it's an ignition switch problem except that the jump from the battery to the solenoid doesn't make the starter turn, just click. Argh!

Any more suggestions would be greatly appreciated.